Photography That Captures the Shame in Our Gaze

Haley Morris-Cafiero photographs public reactions to her body.

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Public Consumption

Haley Morris-Cafiero is a professional photographer whose latest series, Wait Watchers, offers a compelling look at the way obesity is viewed from a cultural standpoint.

She calls the work a “social experiment”—a still-life documentary of how the world reacts to her body as she moves through public spaces.

While to the viewer, these pictures can be painful, Morris-Cafiero doesn’t see it that way. In a recent Salonop-ed, she wrote, “I don’t get hurt when I look at the images. I feel like I am reversing the gaze back on to them to reveal their gaze. I’m fine with who I am and don’t need anyone’s approval to live my life.”

Photo: Haley Morris-Cafiero

Anonymity

While it seems like the subjects she captures don’t know they’re on-camera, the photographer states on her website that the equipment is in fact set up in plain view of passers-by.

Those who cast a critical eye may be able to see the camera taking their picture, but they’re not hindered by it. She recently wrote, “Even though they are in front of a camera, they feel they have anonymity because they are crossing behind me.”

Photo: Haley Morris-Cafiero

Beyond Our Borders

Surprisingly, these reactions are not only from Americans. Some of her pictures include reactions from her trips to Spain and Peru, in addition to those from Chicago, New York, and her hometown of Memphis.

During a trip to Barcelona, Morris-Cafiero could see two men making fun of her in the reflection of a shop window. They were gesturing with their hands that her shape was circular. “The guys were saying something, too, but there was only one word I could make out: gorda. Fat woman.”

Photo: Haley Morris-Cafiero

Public Property

What’s striking about Morris-Cafiero’s series is its depiction of how much a woman’s body is treated as public property; it’s fair game for assessment by complete strangers and in some cases, it’s worthy of scorn.

She writes, “There are so many people in the world who feel they have the right—no, the obligation—to criticize someone for the way they look, and to be that recipient of those insults can feel so lonely.”

Photo: Haley Morris-Cafiero

Voice

Viewers might expect the photographer to feel the urge to say something to people she’s caught staring at her.

But Morris-Cafiero recently wrote, “I suspect that if I confronted these narrow-minded people, my words would have no effect. So, rather than using the attackers’ actions to beat myself up, I just prove them wrong. The camera gave me my voice.”

Photo: Haley Morris-Cafiero

The Discussion

While the inclination to condemn the critical gaze may be strong after viewing her photos, Morris-Cafiero recently explained her end-game isn’t quite that defined. “I got an email from a 15-year-old girl in Belgium who said my images made her ‘feel better and not care about what others think and live my life’. That made me proud. As for what the images mean, viewers may interpret the images as they see fit. I’m just trying to start a conversation.”

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TakePart — a digital news & lifestyle magazine and social action platform for the conscious consumer — is a division of Participant Media, the company behind Pivot Television Network and important films such as An Inconvenient Truth, Waiting For Superman, Food, Inc., Good Night & Good Luck, Charlie Wilson’s War, Contagion, The Help, and many others. Learn more about Participant Media.